Pokey Jones

Getzlaf is a really good hockey player who led his team to a cup. It's not an insult.

Right, when the guy who has been here for ages is sarcastic or has a bit of fun he's a funny guy. When the newer guy does it he gets called a troll right away. God bless the innernet.

Satire and sarcasm are lost on this board. I will stop trying them.

Those stats don't matter, it's what he evolved into that counts. Don't knock it, Getzlaf won a cup and is a dominant player at times even now. Jack is more that type of player is my point. Not a McDavid type. You'd prefer I'd have said Messier. But that was a different era.

The D is much better than last year already, and that is with the injuries. It's the forwards I'm worried about.

I would still trade Kane. I don't think he will ever be more than a fast skating trigger man. He is very predictable and a bit of a one trick pony. Unfortunately, at this moment, we don't have enough fast skating scorers to pair anyone else with Jack at this speed. Reinhart makes Jack play slower. At the speed Housley wants to play at they are incompatible.

Everyone thinks Jack gave us a bargain price but did he? jack is a really good hockey player. Really good. But he's still living off the idea from the draft that he is comparable to McDavid so when he takes a little less than McDavid it seems like a great deal. Maybe he has realized he isn't that good and he won't be as good as McDavid. So an allstar sure, but maybe he's more Malkin than Crosby for a quick analogy. Maybe he's going to seem a little over paid in time. maybe if he'd waited, his price would have had to drop. He's really really good, our best player no doubt, but I just don't see him controlling a game or dominating the way McDavid and possibly Matthews can. I think the best we can hope for is Getzlaf. And with that in mind, we really really need to find him a Perry. Kane isn't it.

Until this roster is good enough to put Moulson in the press box, it simply isn't good enough for the playoffs. The system is good, the hockey will be more fun to watch, but we don't have enough players who can play it well to truly make the playoffs. Not even close to enough. When the old guy comes back and is one of your best forwards you realize how bad the rest of them are.

You win with speed now. The D has to be mobile and transition quickly, this is already showing signs of improvement. The forwards need to stretch pass more and jump the gaps quicker. Our puck possession still sucks and we chase far too much in the defensive zone.

I don't think they have enough players who can play Housley's system (yet).

Lehner losing to Price in a shoot-out did that shock anyone? I liked the effort, I liked the speed, as always we lack finish and scoring touch and some of the slower players struggled. ROR might not fit this team's style the way he did Bylsma's, wait and see if this was just a bad game or a trend. I liked Scandella a lot, and Beaulieu was decent. D definitely better and will get even better as they get Housley's system. We need to find someone who can really play with Jack and Evander. I don't think that guy is on this roster. Lehner is, as always, inconsistent and we need better than that. Moulson was there. We will not make the playoffs.

It's all going to depend on how good Kane is this season. If he's great with jack they'll find a way, but if he's not yes, he might be a cap casualty.

Nah, in this nhl nobody has to drop their gloves to defend themselves any more. Jack isn't soft and will be able to take care of himself no problem. Nylander might need some help, but that's a future issue.

I'm feeling my usual just before the season optimism at the moment. (logic says it'll all crash down fast in a few weeks but for now.............) There'll be some weird Housley magic and it'll all come together and we will be the surprise team of the year. 50 goals for Kane and 100+ point season for Jack. Nylander will even come up and surprise everyone making that a top level nhl trio. Rejoice, we are currently undefeated!

You know Jack is about 200 lbs and over 6 ft. He's not going to need a bodyguard in this nhl. He's going to be more Messier than Gretzky.

Exactly, and Nolan can be that guy.

It has to be that, there is no alternative. Eichel is the #1 center and Kane gets a shot to show he's a true #1 winger. Hope it works.

So that answers all the stuff about does he want to be here. Step one done, it all centers on Eichel now. Compared to other deals, this is a good number if he is what we think he is.

Once he's healthy Nylander will be back up for a look assuming he plays well.At some point this season you will see him playing with Eichel.

Nashville & Columbus. I think those are the only serious suitors right now.

I think at this point both those teams will wait to see how their season is going and this trade will not happen until the deadline or close to it.

Ok here's the thing though. Housley wants an uptempo game. he wants this team to play a LOT faster than we've seen in the past. Everything will be geared towards doing this. So the top line is Eichel/Kane for sure and our success does depend a lot on how good Kane will be. Inconsistency and durability have been his issues so wait and see what happens. If he delivers it'll be a dynamic duo, if not, he'll be moved before the deadline in a full housleycleaning of this roster. I honestly do not think Reinhart can play well at the top speed Housley wants BUT Housley will also need to roll lines to keep legs fresh so you won't see the ROR massive ice time numbers any more and he wants a third line that can compete, not just attempt to hold the score at 0-0 Bylsma style. So point being, look for what talent we have spread over lines rather than all on one line. Kane-Eichel-Griffith Okposo-ROR-Girgensens pouliot-Reinhart-Pommer Larson-Josefson-Nolan Rodrigues will maybe get a chance to bump Griffith down the list if the top line doesn't work when he comes back. pouliot will also be replaced if he sucks bad. And if Reinhart does not put up numbers on the 3rd line he will be traded. Personally, I would leave him on the powerplay, because despite his lack of speed and physicality, he is a smart player who, given the time, makes good decisions so he can work on the PP better where things are maybe a little more deliberate, designed and open ice. Uptempo full strength is another story.

Housley has the right idea, don't think he has the right players to bring that idea to fruition. Or at least not enough of the right type of players (yet). When these guys flounder and fail will they make wholesale swaps or take the easier move and switch coaches - who knows. Also the question of whether or not he changes his plan to fit the team he has, which will also fail in the long term if he does that. I think it will be interesting to see who can play the Housley way and who struggles with it.

Housley is simply showing the signs of being an nhl coach. Say nice things in public. Keep the truth behind closed doors. Before camp started they probably figured Bailey for the roster. They gave him every chance and prodded him to show it but he didn't. So now he's back to the minors and he's "close", which is another way of saying he needs to be better. Will he be? Not seen a thing to indicate he takes the final step. Let's hope he does.

Well I suspect the Hurricanes, Lightning and Flyers will all be better than last year so unless somebody falls apart totally only Detroit, Florida and the Devils are in the bottom battle with us. Montreal and Ottawa both have a few question marks but the rest of last years playoff teams are all definitely above us. Just haven't seen much to give me optimism. On top of that, our payroll is too close to the cap with what we have. If we stink up the first few months I wouldn't be surprised if we see yet another tear down and start over. In that case, I would say only Risto and Eichel are safe. But that's only an IF. We could still surprise. I'd love to be wrong.